Road trip!

Today we went on a little road trip with our friends and I thought you might enjoy seeing just a few of the sights we found along the way...

We visited several different places where the water was absolutely stunning.  The sound and the fury of water is something that has to be seen to be believed.

This is only a sampling of the scenery!

We stopped at a wonderful place where there were tons of wood carvings.

I could have brought several of them home quite happily!

All of these things, plus the bestest Thai food for

lunch!  

A wonderful day!!

Today the quote is very fitting and comes from Patch Adams.... "Nature tops the list of potent tranquilizers and stress reducers.  The mere sound of moving water has been shown to lower blood pressure"

Another section, and collaboration

Here's another section for my second white cloth...

Several parts of this were taken from vintage dresser scarves and small tablecloths. 

The 'thing' on the middle left is a padded form that I then wove with crochet cotton and then surrounded with bullion knots.




As always, you can click to embiggen!

For the 'collaboration' portion of this post, here's a picture of a Prayer Shawl that I completed for a friend.  She loves to knit the squares in various patterns, but doesn't care for the putting together aspect of the project.  I put them together and crochet an edging.  We have done a number of these and I finally decided I should show you one.




Today the quote is from Sharon McAuliffe.... "Better to bloom late in life than to not bloom at all....to dry up as a bud and never release what has been hidden"

Gifted treasures

A friend of mine is moving away and has been downsizing her stash of creativity fodder and today she gifted me with these special treasures...

My friend is in her 80's and she said that the tatting book, shuttle and the lovely little motifs (there were several) were done by her mother.  Although I can't tat, I felt very blessed to become the caretaker for such treasures.  The book was copyrighted in 1944.

Here's a close-up so you can hopefully see the details a little better (click to embiggen!).  The bracelets are more recently made I think, but I'm not sure about the collar.  I think it's crocheted using metallic thread, but it could be a form of weaving.  Unsure of the possible age of that either.

One of the tatted motifs will be making an appearance somewhere on my current white cloth.

Today's quote is from Henry Thoreau.... "The question is not what you look at, but what you see"

Poking, proding, bloodletting....and knitting!

Yes, I've been knitting.  #1 son (the one with the big feet that can't buy slippers in a store) put in a special request for a new pair of the felted slippers that only his loving mother can make, so...

Now I have a special request to make another pair for our daughter-in-love.  She'd like hers in opposite colours and it crossed my mind that she would like them different so they wouldn't get mixed up.  Hah - her feet are little bitty so there's not a chance!!

While I was at it, I used up some of my leftover felting yarn and made this little bag...

Both are made using Paton's Classic Wool yarn and the pattern for the slippers is the Felted Clogs from Fiber Trends.  The purse is the Dumpling Bag pattern by Sharon Dreifuss which can be found on Ravelry.

The poking and proding and bloodletting portion of this post refers to the yearly visit to the doctor that I had to do today.  Always a joyful proposition, but I have to say our doctor makes the whole process actually a good experience.  She's definitely a gem!

Today's quote, from William James.... "To change one's life:  Start immediately.  Do it flamboyantly.  No exceptions"

progress on white

I spent much of the weekend updating my labels in my sidebar so if there's anything there that you might be interested in exploring further there might be some new content to see.  It was a mind-numbing process for sure but long overdue. 




This shows another completed section of my second white cloth.  I love the peacock which is a very vintage embroidery piece.  It needed a bit of repair so I could use it (for some reason his feet and beak had gone awol!).

And this piece is the beginning of a new section. 




Today the quote is from Ralph Waldo Emerson.... 'Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm"

problems with comments?

Is anyone else having difficulties with leaving comments on blogs?  I have noticed two things that are driving me nuts.  The first being that I type a lovely comment, click to publish it and am sent to sign in with my google account (that part is all normal), and then when I go back to finish the publishing process my comment has disappeared and I have to re-type it.  It only happens on a few blogs and there's no rhyme nor reason as to which ones and when it will happen. 

The other issue is that the word verification seems to be messed up - when I look for the 'word' I am presented with a picture instead of the usual gobbeldy-gook that we are supposed to type in to prove we are not a robot.  I end up having to click on the little icon to the right that looks like a circle with an arrow in order to get a useable verification code. 

Am I going nuts (well, more so than usual!);  is it my computer; or are any of you noticing the same problems? 

Wildlife and sewing

Over a year ago I made a denim throw for the back of our couch and hadn't gotten around to recovering the pillows.  Finally made it my goal for the weekend and here they are...

You can just see a corner of the throw in the background.

Last night we had a flock of 37 Canada Geese right below our balcony window...it wasn't long ago these were just little balls of fluff!

The quote for today, from Gwen Owen.... "You can't lose weight without exercise.  But I've got a philosophy about exercise.  I don't think you should punish your legs for something your mouth did.  Drag your lips around the block once or twice" 

Just a little bit

Yes, just a little bit of stitching today....

I'm starting into a bigger section than what the last couple have been so they will take me longer to complete.  This one measures about 8 x 17".

Do you know what this is?....

It's called a puff ball, which is a type of wild mushroom.

They can grow to be about two feet around but 

the majority of them seem to be about this size or a 

little bigger.

Jack peels them, slices them about 1/2 to 3/4" thick and soaks them in milk for a few hours.  He then drains them, and fries them in butter with a little garlic.  Sometimes he adds onion that he has pre-fried.  See.......

Yummy!!

Today's quote is from Elbert Hubbard.... " A friend is someone who knows all about you and loves you just the same"

and......another one!!

Another section for my second white cloth is finished.  The piece on the upper left was embroidered by my maternal grandmother who died in the early 60's, and I think the tatting on the outside was done by my mother.  I don't remember my grandmother ever tatting, but it was something my mother did when she was young. 

Today the quote is from John Muir.... "Climb the mountains and get their good tidings:  Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine into flowers, the winds will blow their freshness into you, and the storms, their energy and care will drop off like autumn leaves"

and...another one bites the dust (needle?)

Despite how it looks, the lines ARE straight!!

Benjamin Franklin once said.... " Wealth is not his, that has it, but his who enjoys it"

Knitting (for a change of pace)

I actually have made something that will be put aside for giving at Christmas (yes, I know...that's not a word we want to think about this time of year!)....

Yarn is 'Boutique Chic' from Red Heart

and the pattern is on the ball band.

Today the quote is from Mae West....  "I never worry about diets.  The only carrots that interest me are the number you get in a diamond"

White....again!!

Over the weekend I began another section for my second white cloth and here it is...

This area began with a vintage hankie pocket/holder.  I added some 'extras' to it, for additional interest, plus embroidered the names and wedding date for the intended recipients.  

Here you can see the pocket flap lifted up.






Today the quote is from John Maynard Keynes...  "The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from the old ones"

More progress on white

Over the weekend I completed another section for the latest white cloth.

If you want to see more of this cloth, or the work I did on

the first cloth, click on either 'White' or 'White 2' in my

sidebar!

Today's quote is from Robert Louis Stevenson.... "That man is a success who has lived well, laughed often and loved much"

A finish and a continuation

Over the weekend I finished crocheting a baby afghan which is a gift for a friend's grand-baby that is expected in August. 

The pattern is one that was given to me by one of my friends (thanks M.E.!) and I'm not sure of the origin.  The edging is one that I contrived on my own.

I also finished another small area of one of the sections for my wrapping cloth #2 project.  Lots (and lots!) of French knots, surrounding 'thrifted' flowers taken from a wedding gown.

Today the quote is from Emily Dickinson (and is one of my favourites).... "My friends are my estate" 

Another gift and amazing embroidery!

This  little crazy-quilted kitty

came to live with me!

Isn't she sweet?

This is the creation of my

friend Pam Kellogg.

Thank you Pam!!

The quote of the day, from Albert Schweitzer..... "In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out.  It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being.  We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit" 

One section completed

This is one of the sections that will be added to my wrapping cloth.  There will probably be about twelve (or so) sections by the time I'm done.  If you click on 'White 2" in my sidebar you can see the sections I have done already.  AND, if you want to see my first wrapping cloth, look under 'White'. 

The quote for today is from Garson Kanin....  "The best part of one's life is the working part, the creative part.  Believe me, I love to succeed, but the real spiritual and emotional excitement is in the doing"

White cloth? What white cloth? Huh????

WARNING!!!

Fall-off chair alert!!!

Yes, I thought it best that you be warned.  I don't want to be responsible for any injuries incurred by my readership.  The guilt would simply be too much for me to handle.  Not only that, I can't afford to send everybody get well flowers and bonbons.  

You may remember (but then again, you may not.  Depends on how far back your memory banks extend)....but eons ago I was working on my second wrapping cloth ( a la Karen Ruane) and it had fallen by the wayside in favour of the  Grande Secret Projects of 2014?  Well, I've dusted it off and am merrily stitching away on it. 

Behold....

THE PROOF!!

Today the quote, from Carrie Snow.... "No day is so bad it can't be fixed with a nap"

Thank you and be prepared!

Firstly, thank you for all the suggestions that you had for my question about a source (and size) for the ribbing I want to put on baby bibs.  I know I could simply knit my own, but I had envisioned the type of ribbing that you find around the necklines (and often the cuffs) of sweatshirts.  That wouldn't be as scratchy for a baby as something that is hand knitted might.  I'm also looking for something with lots of stretch to go over a babies head with ease.  I love the suggestion that I simply go to the thrift store and purchase pre-made baby pullovers and 'source' my ribbing from those.  Never thought of that and I should have because thrift stores are my favourite places to shop!

Never let it be said that I'm not moving into the current century, albeit kicking and screaming all the way.  I've been seeing the current phenomenon of taking 'selfies' all over the place, so yesterday (during a fit of boredom) I decided to give it a whirl.  Out of at least a dozen pictures, there was only one that might be fit to be seen.  Here 'tis, and hopefully it won't do any damage to your computers!!....

(double chins and all!)

DH had his knee surgery yesterday and all went well.  He's enthroned in his favourite chair, with lots of books and the tv remote in hand and is already announcing that he's bored.  Hopefully in a few days he will be able to motor around and not be confined.  Poor man....he has to eat my cooking, so if he knows what's good for him, he'll heal fast!!

Today the quote is from Leo Buscaglia.... "Life is a great and wondrous mystery, and the only thing we know that we have for sure is what is right here right now.  Don't miss it"

Needing advice

I have always found blog readers to be a fountain of information, so I'm going to throw this question out there and hope someone will know the answer (or can send me to the right place).  I would like to make some baby bibs that simply pull over the head with knitted ribbing around the neck, rather than ties or snaps.  I found one at a craft show a year ago and gifted it to our niece and she says it's the best bib ever.   Of course now I can't remember where exactly I got it, nor can I find the pattern.

I can come up with a pattern (there are lots of free ones on the internet) but my problem is two-fold....

1) sourcing the ribbing for the neck - in Canada if at all possible.  Postage rates everywhere else are out of this world so I'd like to find something here.

2) knowing how big to make the neck in order to fit over baby's head. 

Any thoughts?  Thanks, in advance!

Today the quote is from an unknown source (and I thought it might be fitting since I am currently playing semi-nursemaid to my hubby who had knee surgery today)..... " A man too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools "

More mumblings of the site-full kind, and beauty too

Last night we had friends over for supper and they brought us these...

Absolutely gorgeous!

From Cullen Hightower..... "The prime of life is that fleeting time between green and over-ripe"

Mumblings of the site-full kind

I have stumbled across some things that might be interesting to some of you and, being that I have no pictures to show, I thought I'd mumble today.


Today the quote if from Mark Twain - "Let us so live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry"

Another gift!

I really must buy a lottery ticket, because over the past couple of weeks I've been gifted with some pretty nice things....totally out of the blue.  I must be on a streak of good luck!

My friend, Mary Ellen, is a wonderful 'sane' quilter and she made this beautiful tote bag and gifted me with it when we were having lunch the other day....

It's almost too nice to use!

(M.E., please note I said 'almost')

Thank you so much!!!

Today, my quote is from Edith Armstrong.... " I keep the telephone of my mind open to peace, harmony, health, love and abundance.  Then, whenever doubts, anxiety, or fear try to call me, they keep getting a busy signal - and soon they'll forget my number"

Fun gift

A friend just gave me several lovely ladies hankies for use in my work, and included was a VERY interesting one!  Photos don't do it justice, so I simply scanned a portion of the hankie....

Be sure to click on it, and look for the calorie content of the bonbons!

The quote of the day is from Leo Buscaglia.... "There are two big forces at work, external and internal.  We have very little control over external forces such as tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, disasters, illness and pain.  What really matters is the internal force.  How do I respond to those disasters?  Over that I have complete control"

Mystery solved? Sort of!

I can finally tell you a little bit more about the 'great secret project # 1'!   Pam Kellogg, who will be the new owner of  the 'Crazy Quilt Gatherings' magazine starting in January, has announced the names of the artists that will be taking part in her 2015 calendar project.  Guess what?  I'm one of them!!!!   .  I'm very excited about it and must admit that I now feel as though I've 'arrived' in the crazy quilting scene!!    Thank you Pam for asking me to be part of this and now I can't wait to see what the rest of the pin-up girls have created.

Alas, though, I still can't show you any pictures!  You'll just have to wait until September when the calendar will be released.

Today the quote is from Chandler Fuller.... "The brain simply believes what you tell it most.  And what you tell it about you, it will create.  It has no choice"

 

And the winner is......

But before we do that, I thought you'd like to see a couple of really cute pictures I came across...




I thought this flaked-out puppy was such a cutie!

And the eyes on this kitty - somehow they fit the hat!





I'm sorry that I don't know the source of either picture.  If you do, let me know and I'll be more than happy to give credit.



Now to the winner.....hubby drew Carol of the blog Beads & Birds out of the hat (well, it was a margarine tub actually, but close enough).  Send me your snail mail addy Carol and I'll send you the doll of your choice.  Thanks for playing.

Summer!

Vicki of 'Field Trips in Fiber' has been doing a Summer Vacation giveaway this week and has asked that we join in and have our own giveaway today.  I thought I'd take part and offer one of my little faux china-head dolls I posted about the other day.

You can choose either one with the blue skirt or the one in the middle and, in order to have your name entered you have to tell me what  your favourite thing to do in the summer is and why.  Get your comments in on this post and I will draw a name on July 4th. 

Quote for today, from George Horace Lorimer..... "It is good to have things that money can buy, but it is also good to check up once in awhile and be sure we have the things money can't buy"

Warning!

Giving you a head's up before you start reading this.....there is a little bit of 'language' so if you don't like the use of a certain 3-letter 'a' word used in reference to what you sit on, don't read any further. 

Warning # 2....be prepared to laugh.  Seriously would suggest a trip to the bathroom before reading.

I found this posted on one of the knitting groups today and I have to admit I laughed til I cried.  It's simply too good not to share.

SENIOR TRYING TO SET A PASSWORD

WINDOWS:  Please enter your new password
USER:  cabbage
WINDOWS:  Sorry, the password must be more than 8 characters
USER:  boiled cabbage
WINDOWS:  Sorry, the password must contain one numerical character
USER:  1 boiled cabbage
WINDOWS:  Sorry, the password cannot have blank spaces
USER:  50bloodyboiledcabbages
WINDOWS:  Sorry, the password must contain at least 1 upper case character
USER:  50BLOODYboiledcabbages
WINDOWS:  Sorry, the password cannot be more than one upper case character consecutively
USER:  50BloodyBoiledCabbagesShovedUpYourAssIfYouDon'tGiveMeAccessNow!
WINDOWS:  Sorry, the password cannot contain punctuation
USER:  ReallyPissedOff50BloodyBoiledCabbagesShovedUpYourAssIfYouDon'tGiveMeAccessNow
WINDOWS:  Sorry, that password is already in use

Today's quote is from Lewis Mumford.... "Humor is our way of defending ourselves from life's absurdities by thinking absurdly about them"

ATC's

Today was our monthly CQTeers meeting and the theme for our ATC swap was 'buttons'. 

Sue created the one on the upper right - button is made from a wine cork.  Irene did the ones on the bottom - tiny Dorset buttons (impressive to work them that small!); and I did the one on the upper left (commercial buttons, with vintage paper).

The quote for today is from John Fischer....  "Let's assume that each person has an equal opportunity, not to become equal, but to become different - to realize whatever unique potential of body, mind and spirit he or she possesses"

Fun new toy!

We started talking about the advantages of getting a bigger car.  

Talking was all it was. 

Honest.

So how come this came home with us?

It's a 2011 Toyota Rav4 and we love it!  Love it even more with the addition of the racing stripe down the side, which makes it a whole lot easier to find in a parking lot!

Go ahead,

it's okay to tell me we're crazy.

Wouldn't be the first time.

Today the quote is from W. Clement Stone.... "There is very little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference.  The little difference is attitude.  The big difference is whether it is positive or negative"

A fun little project....

Three little dollies

All in a row.

Their skirts are made from ladies hankies and their heads (and shoes) are painted and varnished to resemble antique china-head dolls.  My own design.

Today's quote is from Leo Rosten.... "I think the purpose of life is to be useful, to be responsible, to be honorable, to be compassionate.  It is, after all, to matter: to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all"

Mumblings and mini-celebration

First of all I want to tell you that I have finally finished the 'Secret Project #2' and will be returning to working on my white cloth and a few other projects that have been waiting for attention.  Who knows, there might be pictures to share!


There's a storm rolling in so I'd better get off the computer, just in case!

Today's quote from Paul Theroux.... " The journey, not the arrival, matters;  the voyage, not the landing"

Nearly done......

.....the great secret project of 2014!! 

I put the last stitch into it today and there's just some finishing details to complete and it will be done.  That means that this blog will return to the previously scheduled programming!  Exciting, huh?

I've been meaning to show you a couple of things I've added to my stitching arsenal over the past while.  The first one is a set of threads and bobbins that I picked up through the Regal catalogue.  It's amazing how often I need just a little bit of thread in a certain colour and this kit is just the ticket.  Each colour has a matching pre-wound metal bobbin. 

Today's quote from anonymous....  "Life is in the living, every hour of every day"

Proud moment!

Over the weekend one of my crazy quilt students sent me pictures of her completed hussif.  I am a very proud teacher to think that I had even a little part in the creation of this...

Way to go Chrissie!!  It looks wonderful!







Today's quote is from Andy Rooney... "The two biggest sellers in any bookstore are the cookbooks and the diet books.  The cookbooks tell you how to prepare the food and the diet books tell you how not to eat any of it"

Excitement, and love....

 'Logan John' Richardson,

born at 7 pm last night.

Quilting......of a sort

Everybody knows that crazy quilting is my 'thing' and sane quilting doesn't enter into my realm very often.  I stumbled across this cute 'bug' fabric in our local store and just HAD to buy it for our grandson.  Daddy (our son) is rather strange in his likes and threatened me that there was to be NO baby blue or baby pink for any kid of his.  Well - bugs outta fit the bill, don't you think?

Please don't look at my quilting efforts too closely!

Above is the front.

Wonder of wonders, I happened to be in another

store and stumbled across a buggy flannelette

which was perfect for the backing, and found 

a pretty iridescent  pre-made bias binding.  Bonus!!

Here you can see a little of both the front and the

back fabric, as well as the binding...

Now all I have left to do is hope that the baby

isn't scared of bugs!

(if he is, maybe his daddy will need a security blankie of his own?)

Today's quote, author unkown, ....  "Life is not a someday thing or a one day thing.  It is a right now, every day thing" 

Mumbling today

First of all I want to thank those of you who took the time to make suggestions about tracking down the crazy quilt hussif/pursif pattern by Julie Craig.  It appears she is still in business, but unfortunately doesn't seem to have a web site.  I will keep trying!

The weather is finally warming up here and today it's trying to rain.  Never thought, after all that snow that had to melt off this year, that we'd be hopeful for rain!  It's a good day to stay inside with needle and threads in hand (and also wait for the superintendent to arrive to instal a new ceiling fan/light in my studio).  Hopefully he comes today before it gets too hot!

From E.E. Cummings.... "To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best day and night to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight --- but never stop fighting"

Searching for.....

I have been searching all over the internet to try to locate a copy of a pattern that was issued pre-2004 for a combination Hussif and Pursif  designed by Julie Craig of Attic Heirlooms Designs.  I will finally resort to throwing it out to you to see if any of you would happen to either have a copy or know of how I could locate one.  The pattern has a lovely needle hussif that fit inside a purse (which could also be carried as a normal purse if you wished). 

The now-defunct CQMagOnline magazine had at least a couple of articles about different people creating their versions of the pattern and I would love to create one as well.  I know, before you say it, that I could come up with my own pattern, but there are elements of the original that I just love and would like to learn how to make.

Today's quote is from Dan Zadra....  "Take action on your ideas.  Procrastination is the mortal enemy of spontaneous brilliance"

Errands, errands, errands

B-O-R-I-N-G!!!

I do hate errands.  

I hate grocery shopping.

I hate hauling the groceries inside

and I hate putting them away.

Oh,

and even more,

I hate the manufacturers of toilet plungers,

who can't seem to get their heads around

the fact that we really do want

said toilet plungers to actually,

(gasp) PLUNGE!!

 Oh, the concept!!

 *
*
*
*
rant over.

And the quote for today from Marie Curie:  "Life is not easy for any of us.  But what of that?  We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves.  We must believe we are gifted for something"

Button - of the Dorset kind

Yesterday was our monthly CQTeers meeting and Irene showed us how to make Dorset buttons, something I've been intending to try doing and hadn't gotten around to it.  Here's my effort...

Definitely not perfect, but not bad for a first effort!

Today's quote is from Benjamin Franklin...  "To lengthen thy life, lessen thy meals" 

Nuttin, Nada, Zilch

Yep, that's all I have to post about. 

SO....

Photo credit is unknown.

Today the quote is, once again, from Anonymous....  "If one dream should fall and break into a thousand pieces, never be afraid to pick one of those pieces up and begin again"

Planting our garden

Yes, we do have a garden, despite living in an apartment.  Here it is...

Yep, it's a huge garden!! 

Our entire crop (we hope!) will

consist of tomatoes, lettuce (two kinds),

cherry tomatoes and herbs.  

Looking forward to having a few lettuce, peanut butter & mayo sandwiches and some tomatoes fresh off the vine.  There's nothing like a sun-warmed tomato, freshly picked.  

And yes, I can see you all now....curling up your noses and saying a resounding 'yeeewwww' to lettuce, PB, & mayo sandwiches.  All I can say is don't knock it until you try it!  

 Today's quote, from Anonymous....."  What someone thinks of you is none of your business"

A couple of announcements....

I'm still working on my not-to-be-shown-YET project, so I thought I'd send you off to visit elsewhere. 

Today's quote, from Arlee Barr.... "There is no emergency exit in life, no escape route, no tunnels laid out with a string of lights to guide, no end but the life lived in wonder, finished in love"